Indiana 79, Penn State 76

January 11, 2014|Reuters

(Updated: ADDS Frazier's steals in NOTEBOOK)

Indiana 79, Penn State 76: Noah Vonleh scored 19 points and hit a pair of critical late free throws as the visiting Hoosiers grabbed their first Big Ten victory with their sixth straight win over the Nittany Lions.

Yogi Ferrell added 15 points and seven assists for Indiana (11-5, 1-2 Big Ten), which overcame a 15-point first-half deficit. The Hoosiers prevailed despite a season-worst 36.2-percent effort from the field by going 29-for-35 from the foul line.

D.J. Newbill led the way with 24 points for Penn State (9-8, 0-4), which dropped its first four league games for the second straight season and third time in five years. Ross Travis contributed 13 points while Tim Frazier added 10 before fouling out for the second straight game with less than a minute remaining.

Penn State drained each of its first three 3-point attempts and Newbill scored 10 early points as the Nittany Lions raced to a 31-16 advantage less than 11 minutes into the contest. Indiana allowed only three more field goals and used two separate 6-0 runs over the remainder of the half to close within four at the break.

The Hoosiers knocked down three 3-pointers during a second half-opening 15-5 surge to take their biggest lead of the game at 52-46, capped by a powerful two-handed dunk from Troy Williams with about 13 minutes remaining. Penn State rallied to take a three-point advantage with 3 Â½ minutes left and led 72-70 following a pair of Newbill free throws, but Austin Etherington hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:22 left and Indiana held on by converting its last six free throws.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Vonleh tallied Indianaâs first 12 points while no other Hoosier scored until Stanford Robinson hit a jumper with just over 13 minutes left in the first half. â¦ Frazier, fourth in the country in assists with 6.9 and fifth in the conference at 1.8 steals, was shut out in both columns for the first time since suffering his season-ending Achillesâ injury after six minutes against Akron last season. â¦ Indiana, which leads the Big Ten in turnovers, committed 13 miscues â its lowest total in five contests.